MAP

MapMaker: Population Then and Now: 1790, 2020

How has the population of the United States changed since its founding? Explore in this map.

Grades

4 - 12

Subjects

Anthropology, Human History and Cultures, Geography, History, Social Studies

Loading ...

Learning materials

Instructional Links

Population Then and Now: 1790, 2020: Activity

The United States has changed a lot since its founding in 1776. It has gone from 13 states along the Atlantic coast to 50 states that span the continent and extend into the Pacific Ocean. As the US grew and changed, so did its population.

In this activity, students will use maps to investigate census data from 1790 and 2020. They will compare the total populations and demographics of locations around the United States. They will also compare the current map of the United States to a historic map from 1783 to draw conclusions about the ways the US has changed over time.

Credits

Media Credits

The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited.

Producer

Bayan Atari, National Geographic Society

Project Coordination

Dan Byerly, National Geographic Society

Curriculum Content Team

Anita Palmer - National Geographic Explorer, Project Leader and GIS Education Specialist

Barbaree Duke - Project Leader and GIS Education Specialist

Chris Bunin - National Geographic Explorer, Subject Matter Expert and GIS Lead Designer

Peter Trentacoste - Subject Matter Expert and GIS Designer

Georgeanne Hribar - GIS Designer and Reviewer

Tama Nunnelley - GIS Designer and Reviewer

Judith Painter - GIS Designer and Reviewer

Ashley Melville - Social Studies Program Specialist, Georgia

Last Updated

July 9, 2026

User Permissions

For information on user permissions, please read our Terms of Service. If you have questions about how to cite anything on our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher. They will best know the preferred format. When you reach out to them, you will need the page title, URL, and the date you accessed the resource.

Media

If a media asset is downloadable, a download button appears in the corner of the media viewer. If no button appears, you cannot download or save the media.

Text

Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service.

Interactives

Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. You cannot download interactives.